Track & Field: Four Individual Titles and Top Women’s 4X100 Relay Squad Highlight La Classics

• Louisiana Classics Complete Results (PDF)

LAFAYETTE – Four individual titles and the top women’s 4×100 relay squad highlighted the performance by the Ragin’ Cajuns men’s and women’s track and field team on Saturday in the Louisiana Classics track meet held at the Cajuns Track/Soccer Facility.

The Louisiana Classics served as the 2013 outdoor season opener for the Ragin’ Cajuns who enter their second campaign under head coach and New Iberia native Lon Badeaux.

Lindsey Harmon (Lafayette/Teurlings Catholic HS) and Myles Melancon (St. Martinville/Teurlings Catholic HS) were the Lafayette area standouts in the quartet of individuals placing first in an event.

Harmon, competing in her first collegiate outdoor event, was the top finisher in the women’s high jump with a clearance of 1.78m/5-10. Harmon’s mark presently ranks third nationally.

Melancon, the 2013 SBC Indoor shot put champion, captured first place in the event with a toss of 55-2 ¾ feet (16.83m).

Baton Rouge area natives Anna Katherine Devitt (5,000 meter) and Cole Stafford (3,000 meter steeplechase) were the other individual champions. Devitt clocked in at 18:15.67 and bested teammate Ashley Irwin by nearly 20 seconds for the 5,000 meter title. Stafford completed the 3,000 meter steeplechase in 9:55.00.

The Cajuns women’s 4×100 meter relay squad consisting of Stacy Imagbe, Morgan Breaux, Jasmin Fusilier and Alexis Malone clocked in at 47.21 seconds to edge out conference rival ULM (47.31) for first place in the event.

Louisiana had three of Top 4 finishers in women’s long jump (Tia Mitchell – 2nd; Jasmin Fusilier – 3rd; Ta’Shania Bean – 4th). Former Cajuns standout Jasmine Manuel won the women’s triple jump (39-1) while current Cajun Tarvia Conway was the top collegiate performer (38-3 1/4).

Kacey Elphage was the top collegian in the women’s 100 meter hurdles, finishing second overall with a time of 13.54 seconds. Morgan Cormier (New Orleans/Brother Martin HS) collected a third place finish in the men’s 110 meter hurdles with a time of 14.77 seconds.

Morgan Breaux (Abbeville/North Vermilion HS) and Justin Jones placed Top 10 in the 100 meter dash. Breaux clocked in at 12.02 seconds, finishing third trailing only LSU’s Toshika Sylvester (11.58 – 1^st) and McNeese’s Jasmine Webb (11.96 – 2^nd). Jones came in eighth out of 40 competitors with a time of 10.66 seconds.

Devitt added a Top 5 placement in the women’s 1,500 meter run as she was one of only eight runners to finish in under five minutes, placing fourth with a time of 4:46.45. Freshmen Scott Brewster (2^nd – 4:01.12) and Matt Rice (6^th – 4:05.34) were both Top 10 finishers in the men’s 1,500 meter run.

Madalyn Trisler finished right behind Harmon in the women’s high jump with her clearance of 1.70m/5-7. The mark landed Trisler second place and established a new personal best (previous outdoor high was 1.62m/5-3 ¾ at 2012 Southeastern Invitational)

Freshman Kenneth Nassar appeared in his first collegiate outdoor and placed third in the shot put with a toss of 15.06m/49-5.

Junior college transfer Justin Victor placed third in men’s hammer throw (55.84m/183-2) and sixth in men’s discus throw (45.67m/149-10) in his Division I debut weekend.

The Cajuns’ 4×400 relay squads both placed Top 5, the women (Krystal Chevis, Amanda Roberts, Stacy Imagbe, Danielle Castaldi) placing second with a time of 3:51.57 and the men (Wes Gonzales, Keygan Keys, Zach Meche, Antoine Jackson) coming in fourth with a time of 3:17.40.

UP NEXT FOR LOUISIANA

Louisiana continues its outdoor season opening stretch of three meets in three weekends when the Ragin’ Cajuns travel to Baton Rouge for the LSU Relays scheduled for March 22-23 at Bernie Moore Track Stadium on the LSU campus. The three-week stretch comes to a close March 30 in Mobile, Ala., at the Jaguar Invitational on the University of South Alabama campus.

— Ragin’ Cajuns —